Helios Open Reader provides a ready-built open textbook or reader site using portable Markdown files you fully control. Highlights include a configurable sections structure, a full set of callout blocks, Keep My Place navigation, and optional Git Sync for open collaborative authoring.

Reader Structure

  • Sections structure – top-level folders named section-N are auto-detected as sections and render as section cards on the reader home
  • Section N header – section pages automatically display their section number in the page header; inherits correctly for all sub-pages within a section. The label is configurable (e.g. Chapter, Project, Unit, Module) via Admin → Pages → Reader Home → Section Label
  • Section sub-pages – sections can contain any number of sub-pages, all shown in the sidebar and navigable with Prev/Next controls
  • Reader home page with cover image, title, subtitle, authors, edition, and CC license badge

Callout Blocks

  • Learning Objectives –

[objectives]...[/objectives]

(green); also available as frontmatter (learning_objectives:) for automatic rendering at the top of a section page

  • Key Takeaways –

[key-takeaways]...[/key-takeaways]

(blue)

  • Example –

[example]...[/example]

(purple)

  • Exercise –

[exercise]...[/exercise]

(amber)

  • Definition –

[definition]...[/definition]

(blue)

  • Reflection –

[reflection]...[/reflection]

(green)

  • Case Study –

[case-study]...[/case-study]

(red)

  • Announcement –

[announcement]...[/announcement]

(purple by default; configurable type)

  • All callouts accept an optional title="..." parameter and support Markdown content
  • Five built-in GitHub-style callouts: > [!NOTE], > [!TIP], > [!IMPORTANT], > [!WARNING], > [!CAUTION]
  • Keep My Place – records the last section page visited in localStorage; a dismissable "Continue reading" strip appears on the publication home page on return, linking directly to the last section read
  • Reading progress indicator – shows current page position (e.g. Page 4 of 22) with an accessible progress bar above the Prev/Next navigation on section pages
  • Prev/Next navigation – configurable position: top, bottom, or both
  • TOC scroll spy – active heading highlighted in the Table of Contents as the reader scrolls
  • Start Reading button – on the reader home; links directly to the first section
  • Search across the full reader via the simplesearch plugin

Key Takeaways

  • Content lives in portable Markdown files you own and control
  • Sections structure is auto-detected from folder naming – no configuration needed
  • Callout blocks, Keep My Place, and reading progress are all built in
  • The reader works standalone or embedded in any LMS